Eighteen Dead as Heavy Rains Trigger Floods, Landslides in Kenya

(MENAFN) At least 18 people are dead and families have been forced from their homes as relentless heavy rainfall continues to hammer multiple regions across Kenya, triggering deadly landslides and widespread flooding that have shattered infrastructure and stretched emergency services.

The Kenya National Police Service confirmed the toll on Sunday, reporting mudslides across three counties — Tharaka Nithi, Elgeyo-Marakwet, and Kiambu — where homes have been reduced to rubble and entire households displaced following days of unrelenting downpours.

Multi-agency emergency units have been mobilized and deployed to the worst-affected zones, conducting search and rescue operations, evacuating residents from high-risk areas, and distributing critical relief supplies. Authorities have also launched efforts to chart vulnerable terrain in a bid to prevent further loss of life.

The deadly weather is part of Kenya's long rains season — a recurring annual cycle spanning March through May — which historically brings severe flooding and landslide risk, particularly across highland regions and densely populated urban areas where drainage infrastructure remains inadequate.

Authorities have issued direct warnings to communities in flood-prone and landslide-vulnerable zones, urging residents to remain on high alert and comply strictly with safety advisories.

The latest casualties compound an already grim year for the country. Authorities had previously reported that flooding earlier in 2025 had claimed at least 71 lives nationwide as of March 18 — 36 of them in the capital, Nairobi, alone — painting a sobering picture of the mounting human cost as the season intensifies.

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